Rafal Majka discussion thread

[Miburo]

I don't know if he can beat purito and piti in the vuelta. Haven't checked the parcours.

 

[damian13ster]

Stage 11, 16 looks great. Other than that it is Purito/ Valverde territory.
46km of ITT so he could gain advantage over them there but not sure if it will be enough to overcome time bonuses.
Gaps in GC will be minimal. I will be happy if Majka top 5s with a stage win

 

[Carols]

Thank you Rafal! Nice Ride .

 

[staubsauger]

Vuelta is totally unpredictable, because except Aru and Landa all contenders somehow will be tired from rhe Tour. Some more, some less.

Is Majka under contract with Tinkoff next year? Maybe he also got a Riis clause!

 

[rm7]

Re:

Vuelta is totally unpredictable, because expect Aru and Landa all contenders somehow will be tired from rhe Tour. Some more, some less.

Is Majka under contract with Tinkoff next year? Maybe he also got a Riis clause!

He have a contract for 3 years.

And where is this Riis clause stuff coming from? I heard when they asked him about it, and his answer was "I don't have anything to say about that, I can't talk about it" and he smiled like he always does when there's something he can't talk about.

 

[Broccolidwarf]

Stunning ride by Majka today - you kinda get the impression he could hack it with Froome and Quintana, if he got the chance.... he was putting time into the favorites on Tourmalet, while Astana and then Sky were pulling. Though, that is ofcourse easier, when you have ridden at the back of the bunch the whole first week

 

[Sciocco]

Re:

Stage 11, 16 looks great. Other than that it is Purito/ Valverde territory.
46km of ITT so he could gain advantage over them there but not sure if it will be enough to overcome time bonuses.
Gaps in GC will be minimal. I will be happy if Majka top 5s with a stage win

I think if he's following a similar pattern to last year where he was ok in Giro, great in Tour, but swaps them with Tour and Vuelta, he could do something special. With a little bit of support and good prep he could win the Vuelta. I believe ever since he won those tour stages last year he has unlocked a monster form he can tap into when he needs it.

I wanna see him go all in for it. I think he's my next favorite GC rider if he avoids the racing top 5s/top 10s mentality.

 

[damian13ster]

There is a small problem though. Are there any semi-decent riders left in Tinkoff that can go for Vuelta?
He might just be forced to go with 8 semi-decent guys with engine to cover him in the flat and be all alone in the mountains from a very first point the road rises

 

[Jspear]

There is a small problem though. Are there any semi-decent riders left in Tinkoff that can go for Vuelta?
He might just be forced to go with 8 semi-decent guys with engine to cover him in the flat and be all alone in the mountains from a very first point the road rises

Well I guess he could have Kiserlovski and Zaugg with him.

 

[Sciocco]

There is a small problem though. Are there any semi-decent riders left in Tinkoff that can go for Vuelta?
He might just be forced to go with 8 semi-decent guys with engine to cover him in the flat and be all alone in the mountains from a very first point the road rises

Semi-decent yea, I'm sure some guys for the flat/hills. Most of Vuelta is uphill short climbing so I don't think he needs a great team for that. There is stage 11 of course, but hey maybe he can just attack...

Procyclingstats has Bodnar and Poljanski listed right now. I think Poljanski did some decent climbing recently?

Well I guess he could have Kiserlovski and Zaugg with him.

Them too.

 

[Hugo Koblet]

Majka would destroy Aru in a GT of they faced each other now. Hopefully we'll get the battle in the Vuelta.

 

[DBotero]

Re: Re:

Lol, Aru got his 2nd place in the Giro, in the Vuelta Landa will be unleashed! Only Majka Monster can stop him

He's not the leader man See the posts in his thread.

In the Vuelta team tactics won't be so important. He'll beat Aru there.

Anyway, I certainly think Majka will be able to beat both Piti and Purito, so it depends if Froome really goes for it as well, if Majka will contend for the win.

Old Guard dies but never surrenders I'm not convinced about this,we'll see.But he should contend,worst scenario a podium place.

 

[staubsauger]

I guess he is gonna go all in for the polka dot now and attempts the Giro next year with the aim of overall success.

 

[Brod710]

I still don't know what he was thinking today...dropping everyone while Contador was not directly behind him and 10 sec. later...the drop-off. Can't recall, that I've ever seen something like it.

 

[Carols]

Yeah it seemed like a bonehead move......

 

[Brod710]

Re:

Yeah it seemed like a bonehead move......

Maybe he was making a point? Not happy with the team? If he feels really strong I can even understand him, but I'm sure he will get another shot at a second stage win. No need to do strange things on the road.

 

[staubsauger]

It was actually the best attack on Sky so far.^^

 

[Billie]

Team Majka not keen on helping anybody wearing the same shirt.

 

[damian13ster]

Re:

Team Majka not keen on helping anybody wearing the same shirt.

Apparently wasn't informed about the accident. Even if then what was the point? So that Contador can preserve his spot in top 5?
Still, weird stage today. Hope he has a serious go on stage 18.

 

[Billie]

De Jongh told him to wait

 

[damian13ster]

Re:

De Jongh told him to wait

Source?

 

[Miburo]

Majka *** up, de jongh didn't have to say him anything. When you're not going for stage victory and you're in front of your team leader, you wait to help him out.

Not exactly rocket science.

 

[Billie]

Re: Re:

De Jongh told him to wait

Source?

His wife on twitter

 

[Melo]

If this is true, it's a disgrace, seriously, and Tinkov should sack him. I wonder how Contador will react to this and what he will say to Majka.

 

[damian13ster]

Re:

Majka **** up, de jongh didn't have to say him anything. When you're not going for stage victory and you're in front of your team leader, you wait to help him out.

Not exactly rocket science.

But what was he supposed to do? Stand on the side of a climb for 10 minutes and wait to make sure that Gesink doesn't pass Contador (who supposedly doesn't care if he places 2nd or 10th) in the GC?

Sagan and Majka are saving Tinkoff's Tour while still helping where they are needed. It is much more beneficial for a team to save energy and go for more stage wins.